Internet radio receiver with linear tuning interface

ABSTRACT

A system for supplying streaming media or other media sources to clients, which provides for selection of internet based audio contest providers based on arbitrarily assigned numbers that function as proxies for the URL or IP address of the audio content providers.

This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. application Ser. No.09/570,834, now abandoned, filed May 12, 2000, which is acontinuation-in-part of U.S. application Ser. No. 09/334,846, now U.S.Pat. No. 6,389,463, filed Jun. 16, 1999.

FIELD OF THE INVENTIONS

The inventions below relate to the field of internet communications.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONS

Recently, radiobroadcasters have begun transmitting their audio contentover the internet, allowing consumers to listen to radio stationsreceived over the internet and played through computer speakers. For ahome user to receive radio station “netcasts” over the internet, theuser must have a personal computer, an internet account, browsersoftware such as Internet Explorer® or Netscape Navigator®, an audioprocessing software “plug-in” capable of processing audio information,and a radio simile graphical interface. The browser software must bepurchased and/or downloaded from any one of various browser softwarecompanies, such as America Online, Microsoft, or Netscape. The audioprocessing software must be purchased and downloaded from othercompanies (Apple Computer's QuickTime® software, RealPlayer'sRealAudio®, and Microsoft's Windows Media Player software are examples).Radio simile graphical interface software must be purchased anddownloaded from yet another company (Digiband Radio and MacTuner areexamples of radio simile interface software). None of the browsers arecompatible with all the audio processing software, and none of the audioprocessing software is compatible with all the radio simile graphicalinterface software. A typical end user must be extremely lucky toinstall all the necessary components with proper cross compatibility.The end result, if it can be achieved, is the ability to access a website sponsored by one of the software suppliers, review a database ofradio station web sites maintained by the software suppliers, and linkto the radio station web site from the database.

SUMMARY

The inventions described below provide devices and methods for receivingradio broadcasts over the internet in a device which resembles a typicalradio receiver. The hardware is housed in a radio box separate from apersonal computer, and the interface is a panel of physical radio knobs,buttons, FM and AM channel indicators, etc., on the radio housing.Inside the radio box, necessary computer components and software permitconnection to the internet and communication with various sources ofaudio information. In one embodiment, the device is a completelystand-alone device which a consumer can plug into a telephone line, DSLline, ISDN line, local area network, or cable line and select radiostations with the same type of controls as a typical radio. In thisembodiment, the device (which may be referred to as an internet radio orinternet appliance) may be capable of receiving internet radio data overthe internet as well as receiving traditional radio broadcasts over theair. Also described below are systems and methods for selecting internetradio broadcasts in the device. In another embodiment, the device is abox which communicates with the internet through the user's personalcomputer, which must then have an internet connection and internetsoftware installed and operating. In another embodiment, the device isprovided as a circuit board which can be installed in a regular radio orreceiver, and enable the radio to access the internet through aninternet connection.

Aspects of the interface are modeled on broadcast radio receivers. Forexample, the internet radio presents linear tuning selection, making itnatural to “tune” to the “next” or “previous” stations by imposing alinear architecture on web radio stations identifiers. Since most radiolisteners select radio stations based on frequency indications on theirbroadcast radio receivers, a frequency band can be used as stationidentifiers to impose the linear architecture. However, severalbroadcasters throughout the world may use the same frequency indifferent geographical locations (the assignment to frequency bands isregulated to ensure that stations using the same frequency are so farapart that interference is unlikely). Radio stations are generally tiedto geographic locations, and they generally broadcast content that isrelevant the geographic area. Accordingly, the internet radio may beprovided with a selector system for selecting a geographic area fortuning, after which the user can tune to stations based on frequency.

The internet radio alternatively presents a numeric tuning scheme fororganizing and selecting audio content netcasters. Each internet radiostation is identified by an arbitrary station number or frequency proxyanalogous to how listeners identify AM/FM radio stations by thestations' frequency number. Information on a particular internet radiostation, including its arbitrary station number, is stored in a systemmanagement server and/or in the internet radio. When the user wishes toselect a particular internet radio station, the user selects the stationnumber designating the particular internet radio station by manipulatingthe band selector and the “frequency” selector. Upon selection of aparticular internet radio station number, the internet radio beginsnegotiation protocol to communicate with the internet radio station. Ifthe user selects a station number not allocated to an internet radiostation, the internet radio can output an audio clip including a verbalstatement indicating that the station number has not been assigned, oran audio clip of imposed static. If the user operates the device in aseek mode or scan mode, the internet radio may communicate with thesystem management server or an onboard database to determine adjacentassigned station numbers and serially connect to assigned stationnumbers. If the user selects a station number corresponding to an AM/FMradio station, the internet radio simply tunes to the radio frequencyand outputs whatever radio program is being broadcast within the radio'sreception range on that frequency, and operates as a conventional radioreceiver.

The internet radio provides an easy way to tune to radio stations allover the world, as naturally as a user would tune to local FM and AMstations. A listener in New York might want to hear a Tokyo basedmorning show over breakfast (in New York), so it is advantageous toprovide a system for delaying broadcast reception several hours. Thiscan be done in a specialized internet server which stores the data andsends it out again at a later time. Different users could requestdifferent streams of the same original source but which were delayed bydifferent amounts.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows a stand-alone embodiment internet radio.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of the stand-alone embodiment of the internetradio.

FIG. 3 is a flow chart of the software necessary to operate the internetradio system.

FIG. 4 shows a block diagram of an internet radio designed for use witha personal computer.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart of the tuning process wherein the user isswitching from a first internet radio station to a second internet radiostation.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart of the tuning process wherein the user isswitching from an internet radio station to an AM/FM radio station.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart of the tuning process wherein the user isswitching from an internet radio station to no station.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTIONS

FIG. 1 shows a stand-alone embodiment internet radio. The radio box 1 isprovided as a shell for housing all the components used by the user. Thebox includes a control panel 2, a speaker 3, a power cord 4 (though thedevice may be battery powered, if desired) and a telephone jack orethernet jack 5 and associated internet connection line 6 (which may bea telephone cord, Ethernet cable or other line). On the control panel, avolume selector 7 which can be manipulated to increase and decreasevolume (the volume selector is provided in the form of a rotating knob,but may be provided in various other forms). Band selector 8 is providedto allow a user to select amongst AM radio, FM radio stations and otherradio frequency bands or “virtual bands” (IR A and IR B) that the systemascribes to internet only audio sources (the ascription of virtual bandsto net-only audio sources may be done arbitrarily within the system, ormay be done through consensus amongst net-only netcasters). The bandselector may be provided in the form of a rotary knob, scrollpushbutton, multiple pushbuttons or other configurations. A “frequencyselector” or tuning knob 9 is provided to allow a user to selectnetcasters by selecting a frequency designation, much as a user woulduse a tuning selector on a radio or receiver, or by selecting from netstations organized as a linear list. The tuning knob can be provided inthe form of a rotary knob, scroll pushbutton, a scan pushbutton,multiple pushbuttons or other configurations. The radio box alsoincludes at least one display 10 for indicating current user selections.If an old fashion radio display is desired, the displays may beincorporated into the selector knobs/control panel structure, forexample a pointer on the band selector combined with written labels onthe underlying panels, as shown. If a modern electronic interface isdesired (which will also easier accommodate use of net-only bands andemergent bands created after construction of the radio box), the displayis preferably a digital display (shown in FIG. 2) which can display areadout of the frequency band, frequency or frequency proxy, geographicarea selected by the user, and perhaps also display the volume, balanceand tone as adjusted by the user. A setup control button 11 may beprovided to permit the user to direct the internet radio to run througha set-up procedure to determine needed internet connection informationsuch as local access telephone number, user name and password, and localISP protocols. Alternatively, the setup may initiate an automaticconfiguration using a DHCP protocol or the like. Finally, an on/offswitch 12 is provided to turn the device on and off.

Alternative configurations can be devised to match any user's listeningpreferences and pre-existing home audio/home theater systems. Speakercable connections may be provided so that the device can be connected tohigher quality audio speakers of the user's choice (the speaker can bedisposed of if the end-product is to be provided as a receiver, in whichcase the box can be provided with speaker connections or audio outputjacks for further connection to an audio amplifier or home theateramplifier/receiver). The internet connection line may be provided in theform of a telephone jack and cord, a network interface card and networkcables, cable television cable, an ISDN line, a cellular phone jack orcomplete cellular phone, or any other means for connecting to theinternet. Additional audio controls, such a treble and bass adjustment,balance adjustments, bass boost, etc. may also be added to the controlpanel.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of the stand-alone embodiment of the internetradio. The radio box 1 includes the control panel 2 with controlsmentioned above, such as volume control 7, band selector 8, tuningselector 9, and display 10. The radio box also includes the speaker 3(which instead might be replaced by speaker jacks or a line level outputto a separate high fidelity amplifier). The radio box is connected tohousehold current through power cord 4, and connected to householdtelephone wiring through telephone cord 6. An alpha-numeric input device17 comprises a touchpad, pushbutton array or the like to input basicuser-related system information during the configuration process (atelephone pad input system, common to cellular telephones, may be used).This input device can also serve as a set of pushbutton preset switcheswhich may be used to select preset audio source selections during normaluse. The internet radio can include means for receiving and processingAM/FM broadcasts. This can include a conventional antenna andconventional AM tuner 18 and FM tuner 19. The internet radio includes aninput switch or multiplexer (“mux”) 20 capable of receiving inputs frommultiple sources like the AM tuner and FM tuners 18 and 19 and the audiocard 23, or other inputs such as a cassette deck. The multiplexer iscapable of selectively outputting the inputs received from the AM tuner,FM tuner and the audio card to the audio amplifier 24 in response tooperation of the band selector. Using the band selector 8, the user canset the position of the multiplexer to output either the AM broadcast,FM broadcast, or the netcast. The electronics for connecting to theinternet and communicating through the internet with audio sourcesincludes a computer processor 21, computer memory 22, an audio card 23,an audio amplifier circuit 24 and an internet connection hardware 25(the internet connection hardware may be a modem or modem card, anetwork interface card, cable modem, ISDN modem, DSL modem or the like).The computer processor is programmed with a minimal operating system andsoftware or firmware required to operate the modem, manage networkprotocols to communicate with the ISP, web sites, streaming audiosources, etc., (and handle all negotiation with internet side modules),receive and respond to user inputs from the control panel, and processreceived data to send to the display 10 and audio card 23. The computermemory 22 is used by the computer processor to store information, suchas user presets, a database of web site addresses (and operatingsoftware and internet software if this is not provided in firmware withthe computer processor), frequency proxies and local digital soundrecordings. The memory may be provided in the form of hard disks, floppydisks, minidisks, flash memory, memory sticks, RAM or any other form ofmemory. The audio card 23 receives data from the computer processor (ordirect from memory) and translates it into audio signals which are thentransmitted to the audio amplifier 24 and then to the speakers whichthen translate the audio signal and annunciate sound and provide thedesired audible output. The internet connection is accomplished throughthe modem/NIC box, which is preferably provides data connection to ahigh speed internet connection such as DSL or a cable modem. (Ifinternet access is through a dial-up modem, the modem card 25 processesdata signals which are created in the computer processor forcommunication to internet web sites or processing centers through thetelephone line, and processes data signals from the internet which aretransmitted to the radio box through the telephone line.) The expecteddata transmitted from the computer processor to the internetwebsites/processing centers comprises requests for access to specificURL's, requests for specific audio sources from a database of audiosources maintained at a system website, searches for audio sources, andcommunication of some information regarding the specific user's internetradio to a web site. The desired data transmitted from the internet tothe user's internet radio is the audio content from an audio source.This desired data will be accompanied by other data, such as anidentification of the audio source or website, the audio data protocolor format, and other information used by the computer processor toprocess the audio information. The audio data is expected to be in astandard format (although several “standards” are currently incompetitive use). The computer processor is programmed with one or moreprograms for translating the standard data formats for audio informationinto audio signals acceptable to the audio card.

On the internet side, as shown in FIG. 2, the internet components withwhich the internet radio interacts are illustrated. The radio mustconnect to the internet through a host, such as an internet serviceprovider (ISP) 26. The ISP serves to connect many internet users to theinternet, and passes all the data between the internet radio and thevarious websites. Audio content netcaster website homepages 27 (of whichthere are currently thousands) transmit or stream audio information,upon request, to many internet users simultaneously. The audio files areprovided through an audio file server 28 “behind” the homepage, with aseparate URL. At the audio file servers, audio data is stored in adigital stream format for communication through the internet. The audiodata is provided through streaming audio software that provides theaudio data to users requesting a connection to the audio data stream.Various search engine websites 29 exist on the web, and may be accessedto search for audio content websites. A system management website 30provides management services to the community of internet radio users,such as maintenance of a content provider database, audio file serversassociated with content providers, management of advertising contentinterjection or pre-rolls, firmware/software updates, and initialconfiguration management.

In normal use, internet radio users will merely turn the radio on andselect a radio band (AM, FM, or NetM), select a station by associatedfrequency, call sign, web address, or frequency proxy (or otherarbitrary designation). When preset buttons are enabled and programmed,the user can select any preset “station” or audio source by pressing apreset button. The internet radio will dial the user's ISP, sign ontothe users internet service, and negotiate with the ISP to link to theURL or web site address of the desired audio content netcaster or linkto the URL or web site address of the associated audio file server.

For initial use, it is preferable that the stand-alone version of theinternet radio require as little configuration as possible. Thus, theinternet radio is programmed with software which, upon first use or inresponse to a request to configure (which can be entered in numerousmanipulations of the input knobs), will:

-   -   (1) Dial-up server-based walk through: operate the modem to        connect to a stored telephone number and to a system management        server operated by the proprietors of the internet radio system,        and upon connection the system management server will        communicate with the individual internet radio (as if it were a        “client node”) to download a database of audio content provider        URLs, query the user (through the display panel) as to their ISP        identity, ISP local telephone number, username and password. If        necessary, the system management server will download any        software/firmware updates and audio processing plug-ins to the        user's internet radio; or    -   (2) Front panel configuration: operate the display and memory to        query the user (through the display panel) as to their ISP        identity, ISP local telephone number, username and password; and        optionally initiate a call to the internet and communication        with the system management server and negotiate a download of        current database of audio content provider URLs; or    -   (3) Nation-wide provider setup: operate the modem to connect to        a telephone number of a nation-wide or area-wide ISP company        (such as CompuServe or AOL), to obtain local telephone access        numbers, and walk through setup with entry of ISP screen names        and passwords through the keypad in response to prompts from the        nation-wide or area-wide ISP company; or    -   (4) Personal telephone call with a system customer        representative, where the user communicates location, ISP        information, screen name and password to the customer        representative; the customer representative can then walk        through configuration with the user, or enter configuration data        into system management server, whereupon the internet radio can        dial-up system management server directly and negotiate        automatically with the system management server to configure the        internet radio with the data provided to the customer service        representative (the data can also be provided to the system        management server by the user using their own personal computer        and web browser).

The software necessary to operate the internet radio system isillustrated in flow chart form in FIG. 3. Upon system startup(preferably accomplished by turning the radio on using the powerbutton), the system software loads (block 31). Since the device has asingle purpose, the application software can be immediately launchedupon startup (block 32) and in fact can be combined with the systemsoftware. The system/application software initializes the internetconnection hardware (if a modem is used, this may include checking fordial tone (or other expected signal from the internet connection) andproper response from the internet connection hardware (block 33), andchecks for input from the user interface (block 34), such as the desiredband and station. The software logs onto the user's ISP (block 35) (If adial up connection is used, this may include negotiating with the user'sISP to enter screen name and password, and waiting for the openingscreen or ISP homepage). If the system is designed to use an audiocontent provider database which is stored in the internet radio's ownmemory, the content retrieval module of the software (block 36) looks upthe URL corresponding to the desired station (which may be stored in onboard memory or on the system management server) and then enters thedesired audio content URL (i.e., the web address) in the ISP homepage.If the system is designed to depend on the system management server,then the content retrieval module of the software (block 36) enters thesystem management server address, awaits connection with the systemmanagement server homepage and enters the desired station identifierinto the system management server. The system management server thenlooks up the web address for the desired station, and negotiates withthe audio content provider website to arrange transmission of audio datato the user's internet radio. Upon receipt of the audio data, the dataprocessing module (block 37) processes the audio data received andcauses that data to be transmitted to the audio card, for eventualtransmission to the speakers. The data processing module also processesany accompanying identifying data (block 38), and causes thatidentifying text data to be sent to the display. The system thereaftermerely passes audio information through to the radio speakers, until theuser turns off the radio or changes the station. When the station ischanged, the software steps through the process of finding the webaddress corresponding to the desired audio content provider andnegotiating with internet websites to arrange transmission of audiosignals from the audio content provider to the internet radio (loop 39).

FIG. 4 shows a block diagram of an internet radio designed for use witha personal computer. The radio box 40 is supplied as a peripheral devicefor the personal computer system 41, to be connected with the USB, SCSI,serial or other communications protocol and appropriate connector 42.The radio box 40 in this embodiment contains circuitry and computerprocessor sufficient to create the radio-like interface. The remainingcomponents are supplied in the personal computer system, which includesthe processor 43, the monitor 44, speakers 45 and internet connectionhardware 46 which connects the computer system to the internet 47. Thecomputer in this embodiment, and the stand-alone player of FIG. 1, arereferred to as clients, client computers or internet appliances. Thesoftware package for controlling the radio and responding to the usermanipulation of the radio controls can be incorporated into a softwareprogram stored in the processor 42, as a driver or plug-in to popularbrowser software such as Netscape Navigator® or Internet Explorer®, andcan incorporate various audio plug-ins for those browsers, such aRealAudio® or QuickTime® streaming audio software. The internet radioplug-in software provides the computer system with the capability of (1)receiving input from the radio box tuning selector 9, volume control 7,band selection control 8, (2) transmitting display text to the display(if provided, as in FIG. 2), (3) processing audio data for transmissionto the speakers through operation of the streaming audio software. Inoperation, the user selects a desired streaming audio source byselecting it with the controls on the radio box, selecting thegeographic origin of the desired audio source, the band of the desiredaudio source, and the frequency of the desired audio source (for radiostations) or other designation (for internet only audio sources).

The internet radio can be provided with a numerical tuning scheme forselecting an audio content netcasters. Each audio content netcaster isdesignated and identified by an arbitrary station number or frequencyproxy very much like AM/FM radio stations are identified by thenumerical portion of their alphanumeric call letters. The stationnumbers or frequency proxies can be whole numbers or include decimals.If the number range for designating audio content netcasters do notoverlap with the number ranges for designating FM radio stations(87-108) and AM radio stations (530-1710), the input selector anddisplay may provide for continuous selection of FM, internet radio andAM stations with a standard digital display and frequency selectortypical used with radios. If the number range for designating audiocontent netcasters is arbitrarily chosen between 108 (the top of the FMradio number range) and 530 (the bottom of the AM radio number range),users can select stations, whether broadcast or webcast, from acontinuous range of frequencies or frequency proxies which are presentedwithout differentiation in the mode of selection. Other preferredstation number ranges can be 1 to 86 or any number higher than 1711.(The frequency proxies may be chosen to overlap previously existing FMand AM number, if confusion may be avoided using the band selector.) Inour example, CIBL in Canada, BBC in England, an audio book source, and aheadline news source are designated and identified by arbitrary stationnumbers 123, 124, 125 and 126 respectively. The process of designatingan audio content netcaster with an arbitrary station number can beimplemented by the system management server 30 or the user. Some stationnumbers may not be in use or currently associated with an audio contentnetcaster. In our example, station number 128 is not in use. Thearbitrary station numbers are stored in the system management serverand/or the internet radio, and no two audio content netcasters aredesignated by the same station number. The station number range can beprovided on the internet radio's display 10. The display provides theaudio content netcaster number range of 109.0 to 529.9.

By frequency proxy, we mean a number which appears on the radio displayas if it corresponded to a frequency of the underlying station which isplayed when the internet radio display is adjusted to display thenumber. In the FM and AM bands, the numbers displayed are the actualfrequency of the station to which the radio is tuned. In the internetradio band, the numbers displayed have no relationship to a frequency,and serve as a proxy for a predetermined internet audio contentprovider. Frequency proxies are assigned to audio content providersarbitrarily. This means that there need be no correlation between anycharacteristic of the audio content provider and the assigned frequencyproxy. The numbers may be assigned in any order, and may be randomlyassigned as the audio content provider's URL is added to the systemmanagement database (in which case the frequency proxy would be the samefor all users) or a database resident on individual internet radioappliances (in which case the frequency proxy assigned to each stationwould vary from user to user). The frequency proxy may be assigned basedon any predetermined relationship or function of the IP addresses of theaudio content providers, such as the numerical ordering of the IPaddresses. For example, a number of IP addresses of the form63.204.166.13, 204.204.166.160, etc. could be arranged in numericalorder (either ascending or descending) and arbitrarily assigned tofrequency proxies of the form 109.0, 109.1, etc. The typical twelvedigit IP address may also be mapped to the available frequency proxiesthrough a mathematical function. Also, sub-ranges of the availablefrequency proxies may be assigned to certain genres, so that users willbecome accustomed, and come to rely on, arbitrary ranges of frequencyproxies to expect certain genres to be assigned to the sub-range. Forexample, talk radio stations may be preferentially assigned frequencyproxies starting at 110.0 on the display, while pop rock stations may bepreferentially assigned frequency proxies starting at 200.0, and othergenres may be assigned in like fashion. Thus, there may be someunderlying rational to the assignment of frequency proxies to audiocontent providers, though the scheme for making the assignment isarbitrary.

As programmed, the software takes input from the control panel knobsand/or pushbuttons or other input devices, and negotiates with theinternet to receive a stream of audio data from the URL associated withthe user's selection on the knobs or buttons. The net radio sendsrequests using the knob (and other) data translated into requests to aURL which is redirected by a server. For example, let's assume we have auser “iowajoe” who owns net radio with Ser. No. 98678 who is turning theknob—here are examples of the kinds of requests which could be sent bythe radio to the server (the server being designated by the web sitenames netradiostation.com in this example).

Turning the knob to various positions such as 123, 124, 125, and 126(arbitrary station designations set by the system or by the user forCIBL in Canada, BBC in England, an audio book source, and a headlinenews source, respectively), would send the following requests:http://www.netradiostation.com/stations/iband?knob=123&use=iowajoe&serialno=98678http://www.netradiostation.com/stations/iband?knob=124&use=iowajoe&serialno=98678http://www.netradiostation.com/stations/iband?knob=125&use=iowajoe&serialno=98678http://www.netradiostation.com/stations/iband?knob=126&use=iowajoe&serialno=98678On the netradiostation server side (this is pseudo code), the systemwill receive and act upon input from the user's internet radio box asfollows:

-   If (user=iowajoe)    -   If (knob=123)        -   Serve audio stream of an add for brand name blue jeans        -   Connect to CIBL station in Canada at            http://www.cibl.cam.org/live.ram    -   If (knob=124)        -   Serve audio stream of locally stored headlines from BBC News        -   Redirect to live feed from BBC News to join the program in            progress    -   If (knob=125)        -   Serve audio stream for today s chapter of audio book of the            week    -   If (knob=126)        -   Find user in user database and locate city        -   Redirect to audio stream for user s local weather based on            city information        -   Serve audio stream for user s local advertisement of            Bageltown on Main Street        -   Redirect to audio stream for People Magazine headlines        -   Redirect to audio stream for Sports Headlines        -   Serve audio stream from text to voice converter of sports            scores based on user interest in Hockey, and the local high            school Wildcats team        -   Redirect to ad for the Gap at http://www.gap.com/audio/add?            -   local=iowacity&user=male        -   Redirect to audio stream for 40 s swing at-   http://www.newcastle.edu.au/fm104.ram

FIG. 5 is a flowchart of the tuning process wherein the user isswitching from a first audio content netcaster to a second audio contentnetcaster. The internet radio 1 is in communication with audio fileserver CIBL in Canada via the internet. Server CIBL is streaming audiodata to the internet radio for outputting through the radio's speakers.On the internet radio's display 10 is the readout “123” or some otherreadout indicating that the current selected station number is 123. Onthe control panel, the band selector can be in the virtual bandposition. The user then wishes to switch to station BBC. The usermanipulates the tuning knob, seek button or preset buttons until thedisplay reads “124.” When the knob is on number 124, the stored audiostream for the BBC headlines is served from the system management server(netradiostation) server while the system negotiates a connection withthe BBC “live” audio stream feed. As the stored audio stream draws to aclose, the connection to the live BBC feed is initiated.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart of the tuning process wherein the user isswitching from an audio content netcaster to an AM/FM radio station. Theinternet radio 1 is in communication with audio file server CIBL via theinternet. Server CIBL is streaming audio data to the internet radio foroutputting through the radio's speakers. On the internet radio's displayis the readout “123” or some other readout indicating that the currentselected station number is 123. On the control panel, the band selectorcan be in the virtual band position. The user then wishes to switch toFM radio station 102 KIIS. The user manipulates the tuning knob, seekbutton or preset buttons until the display reads “102.” The user alsomanipulates the band selector 8 to the FM position. Upon selection ofstation number 102, the internet radio simply tunes to the frequency 102MHz and begins to output the radio broadcast. The internet radio ceasesoutput of the audio stream from server CIBL at any point between theuser selecting station number 102 and output of the FM radio broadcast.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart of the tuning process wherein the user isswitching from an audio content netcaster to no station. The internetradio 1 is in communication with audio file server CIBL. Server CIBL isstreaming audio data to the internet radio for outputting through theradio's speakers. On the internet radio's display 10 is the readout“123” or some other readout indicating that the current selected stationnumber is 123. On the control panel, the band selector can be in thevirtual band position. The user then wishes to switch to station number128. Station number 128 does not designate any audio sources. The usermanipulates the tuning knob, seek button or preset buttons until thedisplay reads “128.” The internet radio determines that station number128 is not being used to designate any audio sources. Upon suchdetermination, the internet radio can output a stored pre-roll, staticnoise or any other audio clip. The internet radio ceases outputting theaudio stream from server CIBL at any point between the user selectingstation number 127 and output of the audio clip.

The netradiostation server uses the tuning knob and user parameters toindex into a list of station URLs from which the radio audio data willbe actually served. During that redirection process, the netradiostationserver may provide some content while the other site is being connectedto and the stream initialized. Thus, when the user turns the controlpanel knobs to select station 123, the system negotiates a connection tothe CIBL radio station's audio stream. While the system is negotiating,the system management server can feed an advertising audio stream tofill otherwise dead “air” time. In the system operation illustrated inrelation to arbitrary channel designation or number 126, the user hasstored a number of URL's for various audio sources, such as localweather, sports headlines, gossip headlines, etc. The system managementserver redirects the inquiry accordingly, on the basis of the knob anduser data provided in the request.

The internet radio described employs a linear tuning band for stationselection. This linear approach means that the order in which stationsare visited when adjusting the tuning is fixed. This provides thesoftware with the ability to pre-fetch audio from the “next” or“previous” URLs in the list. As a result, when the tuning is adjusted,the internet radio does not have to initiate a connection to the newstation from scratch and may in fact already have a connection initiatedand some (perhaps low quality) audio buffered in anticipation of anadjustment in tuning. This will reduce the apparent dead time whenchanging net radio stations.

When changing stations, the internet radio may fill the time to initiatethe playing of the audio stream from either special a clip on a serverwhich is a few hops away or from local storage in the device. Theseaudio sources could contain advertising, station identification, orother audio to be played while the connection with the desired URL isinitiated.

The tuning process we have described is based on a linear list of netradio stations. There is no reason to only create one NetM band—it maybe advantageous to define a number of different bands which each havedifferent characteristics such as local, international, jazz, etc.

In addition to a set of linear bands, the bands may be organized as atree of bands. In this organization, there is a top level band whichcontains a number of other bands and so on. For example the top levelband (which may be customized by the user) might look like this:<KCBS Local News Station> <Jazz Stations> <International> . . .Selecting <KCBS Local News Station> plays the local news on KCBS.Selecting <Jazz Stations> presents a new band of Jazz Stations: such as<WBGO NJ> <WFSJ FL> <WJZW Smooth Jazz DC> <WPFW DC> . . . <Jazz inEurope> . . . . Selecting <Jazz in Europe> brings up a new band whichincludes stations of Jazz in Europe and perhaps other bands whichpresent different orderings of the band itself. Thus, <Jazz in Europe>might have European jazz stations listed alphabetically by call lettersbut also have bands such as <Jazz in Germany> which contain just GermanEuropean jazz stations.

On the control panel 2, a display is shown which indicates the currentstation being played. An alternative to this visual display would be forthe internet radio to provide audio cues for station identification, andduring the tuning process. For example, as one changes stations on theJazz dial, the internet radio can play a brief clip with a stationidentifier as one roamed across the band.

The internet radio can be provided with a host of ancillarycapabilities. It can be provided with digital signal processingcapability to improve the perceived sound quality of the presentation.An audio input capability (either analog or from stored media) can beprovided to allow the user to transmit audio data over the net, creatingan audio netcast site. The internet radio can also be manufactured inmodular form, with a circuit card being fashioned along with acomplementary stereo receiver, boom box, car radio or the like. Thecircuit card housing the computer processor, modem, and input and outputconnectors can be supplied as a component to be install in such systemsin original equipment manufacture, or as an after market upgrade forsystems designed with necessary connectors and installation space toaccommodate and after market upgrade. Although the term radio has beenused by analogy, the device can more generally be considered as an audiocontent receiving device.

Imposed static is one ancillary capability that facilitates use of thesystem in the face of imperfect performance of audio content providers.Many attempts to access audio content servers will fail because theserver is inoperative, the URL has changed, the user has selected anunused frequency proxy in a system which uses frequency proxies, or ahost of other reasons. Upon failure to connect to the audio contentprovider, the user's system will receive no input, and thus have noaudio output. Without further direction from the system, the user'saudio output will remain silent. This deprives the user of the naturalfeedback indicating the status of the system.

To provide an indication whenever the user has tuned to a station thatis inoperative, the system management server, as described above, looksup the web address for the desired station (selected by the user), andnegotiates with the audio content provider website to arrangetransmission of audio data to the user's internet radio, and thenmonitors the connection for successful connection. Should connectionfail to be completed, or fail after it is established, the overallsystem can impose static on the audio output. To accomplish this, thesystem management server (or other component in the system) isprogrammed to detect a failed connection and direct or otherwise causethe play of audio static or crackle, verbal statements indicatingfailure of the connection, or any other distinct sound that informs theuser that the chosen connection has failed. The verbal statements ordistinct sound may include verbal statement or other indications of thecause of the failure and may also include prompts or suggestions orother indications of a corrective action to be taken by the user. Thesound files for the distinct sound may be stored on the systemmanagement server, the user's computer or the radio box, or in theanalogous components of a stand-alone player. The function of detectinga failed connection can also be assigned to the user's computer or thestand-alone player, rather than the system management server. Thus, theclient computer can be programmed to monitor for successful connectionbetween the client computer and the internet based audio contentprovider, and, upon sensing failure of said connection, causing theclient computer to play on the audio speakers a distinct sound thatinforms the user that the chosen connection has failed.

The distinct sound can include messages to address various situationslikely to be encountered. The system management server can be programmedto search for and propose, through verbal statements, an alternate audiocontent provider in the case of a failed connection with the userselected audio content provider, and then await input from the clientcomputer which may indicate acceptance of the alternative or a freshselection by the user of another audio content provider. Also, someaudio content providers may required payment of a fee, through asubscription, before transmitting audio content to a client computer.The connection will be established between the client computer and thesubscription based audio content provider, but no audio content will betransmitted unless the client computer transmits required codes oridentification data to the audio content provider. In this case, thesystem may detect the refusal to transmit content, and direct thetransmission and play of distinct sounds including verbal statementswhich announce the subscription requirement and provide prompts touser's establishing a subscription. To address another problem, thedistinct sound can be used to block unwanted stations. For example, theuser can communicate with the system management server, and enter namesor URL's of audio content providers which it wants blocked fromtransmission. These would most likely include providers of adult contentor otherwise offensive content, like polka music. When the clientcomputer thereafter requests connection to blocked audio contentproviders, the system management server directs the play of static,verbal messages or distinct sounds, or redirects the request to otherproviders. The alternative providers can be preselected by the user ormay be preprogrammed into the system management server.

When applied to streaming video, as described below, the imposed staticcan be provided in the form of audio static and crackle played throughthe audio speaker combined with an image of video snow displayed on themonitor. In addition to video snow and audio static, the verbalstatements indicating failure of the correction, or any other distinctsound that informs the user that the chosen connection has failed may beprovided, along with displayed dialog boxes, written messages, ordistinct visual indications that inform the user that the chosenconnection has failed. Indications of Subscription requirements andblocking of offensive content can be applied to the video contentrequests.

While the invention has thus far been described in terms of receivingaudio content, and in particular the netcasts of current radiobroadcasters, the invention may readily be used to receive video contentshould television or cable video content providers chose to netcastvideo content. In this case, the current world wide web interface whichis now used to download relatively small video files may be replacedwith a television-like interface, in which a monitor and speakercombination is provided with user input controls as described above,including (1) geographic origin selector, (2) band selector (i.e.,broadcast or netcast only), and (3) channel selector, which are used bythe viewer to select video content without resort to a personal computerand navigation through the architecture of the world wide web.

Thus, while the preferred embodiments of the devices and methods havebeen described in reference to the environment in which they weredeveloped, they are merely illustrative of the principles of theinventions. Other embodiments and configurations may be devised withoutdeparting from the spirit of the inventions and the scope of theappended claims.

1. A method for selectively connecting to an audio source in a devicecapable of receiving audio content from a plurality of audio contentnetcasters and from AM/FM radio sources and outputting said audiocontent received, each audio content netcaster having a URL, the devicecapable of connecting to the audio content netcaster with the URL, thedevice capable of tuning to the AM/FM sources, said method comprisingthe steps of: providing each audio content netcaster with an arbitrarystation number; storing the arbitrary station number and URL of saidplurality of audio content netcasters; selecting an audio source; if theselected audio source is one of the plurality of audio contentnetcasters, then further selecting a desired arbitrary station number,and if the desired arbitrary station number is associated with any ofthe plurality of audio content netcasters then recalling the URLassociated with the selected arbitrary station number and connecting tothe audio content netcaster with the URL associated with selectedarbitrary station number, and if the selected arbitrary station numberis not associated with any of the plurality of audio content netcasters,then outputting an audio clip; if the selected audio source is any ofthe AM/FM sources, then tuning to the AM/FM sources; and wherein thearbitrary station numbers fall within a range of numbers.
 2. The methodof claim 1, wherein the range of numbers does not overlap with the rangeof numbers allocated to designating AM/FM radio stations.
 3. The methodof claim 1, wherein the range of numbers allocated to designating theplurality of audio content netcasters is 109.0 to 529.9.
 4. A system fordelivering audio content over the internet to an internet radio, whereina plurality of audio content providers are capable of providing audiocontent to an internet radio which is connected to the internet, whereineach audio content provider is characterized by a unique internetidentifiers, said system comprising; a server for managing connectionsbetween a plurality of internet radios to audio content providers; adatabase of unique internet identifiers and arbitrarily selectednumbers, wherein the arbitrarily selected numbers are assigned tocorrespond to the unique internet identifiers; wherein the server, inresponse to input from an internet radio indicating input of one of thearbitrarily selected numbers, redirects the internet radio to the uniqueinternet identifier of the corresponding audio content provider; whereinthe arbitrarily selected numbers are chosen from the range of 108.0through 529.9.